Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Istanbul landmark returns as mosque
Loss of Hagia Sophia’s religiously neutral status is both celebrated and decried
ISTANBUL — Fulfilling a dream of his Islamic-oriented youth, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined hundreds of worshippers Friday for the first Muslim prayers in 86 years in the Hagia Sophia, the Istanbul landmark that served as one of Christendom’s most significant cathedrals, a mosque and a museum before its conversion back into a Muslim place of worship.
Thousands of other Muslim faithful came from across Turkey and quickly filled specially designated areas outside the Byzantine era monument to join in the inaugural prayers. Many others were turned away, while Orthodox Christian church leaders in Greece and the United States announced a “day of mourning” over the Hagia Sophia’s return as a mosque.
The prayers began with Erdogan reciting from the Quran.
The head of Turkey’s religious authority, Ali Erbas, led the ceremony and prayed that Muslims would never again be “denied” the right to worship at the internationally celebrated sixth-century structure.
As many as 350,000 people took part in Friday’s prayers, the president said.
Adem Yilmaz, who attend- ed the prayers, expressed joy at experiencing “the making of history.”
“This turned into a place where all hearts beat at once,” he said.
Brushing aside international criticism, Erdogan is- sued a decree restoring the iconic building as a mosque this month, shortly after a Turkish high court ruled that the Hagia Sophia had been illegally made into a museum more than eight decades ago.
The structure, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has since been renamed “The Grand Hagia Sophia Mosque.” arkansasonline.com/725muslim/
The move sparked dismay in Greece and the United States and among Christian church leaders who had called on Erdogan to maintain the Hagia Sophia as a museum in recognition of Istanbul’s multifaith heritage and the structure’s status as a symbol of Christian and Muslim unity.
The Hagia Sophia’s reemergence as a mosque is being interpreted as a move aimed at consolidating Erdogan’s conservative and religious support at a time when his popularity is sagging amid an economic downturn.
“It allows him to switch the narrative away from the economy to the culture wars, an area where he did well in the past by mobilizing his right-wing base,” said Soner Cagaptay, Turkey analyst for the Washington Institute and author of “Erdogan’s Empire.”
“This is Hagia Sophia breaking away from its captivity chains. It was the greatest dream of our youth,” Erdogan said last week. “It was the yearning of our people and it has been accomplished.” Erdogan also described its conversion into a museum by the republic’s founding leaders as a mistake that is being rectified.
In neighboring Greece, bells tolled and flags flew at half-staff at hundreds of churches across the country in protest of the decision. The Greek Orthodox Church leader, Archbishiop Ieronymos, held a special service at Athens Cathedral later Friday. Churches in Athens and in Greece’s second-largest city, Thessaloniki, also organized vigils.
“Universal values have been tarnished, and that is why they require universal condemnation,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said.
Information for this article was contributed by Robert Badenbieck, Derek Gatopoulos and Costas Kantouris of The Associated Press.